Steiner: Haas had nothing to fear in Ferrari copy allegations

Haas team principal Guenther Steiner believes that the American outfit had nothing to fear when there were claims made that they were copying the design of the Ferrari.

Last season, his team came under pressure from rivals when they were suspected of copying the design of Ferrari, a team which they already had strong connections to.

Their relationship with the Scuderia has been called "very intelligent" by Toto Wolff, as many car parts are shared. Under the regulations of the sport, Haas have to own the IP for its monocoque, survival cell, roll structure, bodywork, wings, floor and diffuser. Everything else however, can be supplied by Ferrari.

Once investigated, Haas did not fall foul of these rules, even though Romain Grosjean was disqualified in Monza for an illegal floor design. This was not in relation to the copying claims however.

“We have proved we are not doing anything because we invited people to come in, plus all the tests the FIA did, and we are still open if someone wants to audit us,” Steiner said. “Just do it. We are open to it.

“It never happened because people were just trying to scare us, but you cannot scare someone who doesn’t need to be afraid. So, we said, ‘yes, you are our guests’.”

Haas have managed to secure a title sponsorship deal with British-based energy drinks company, Rich Energy.

Steiner doesn’t believe the fresh backing will change the way Haas operates and is confident of also retaining the same arrangement it has with Ferrari for 2019.

“I think we are three years in and the Haas F1 name is pretty well established,” he said after the Rich Energy announcement. “Now everybody knows what Haas F1 is. For one reason or another it is well established.

“If a partner comes along which again contributes enough and gives you opportunities as well, why not do it? I think it will help the team.

“It will be exactly the same [with Ferrari]. We have got a very good relationship, it’s working very smoothly because we established all the rules. It’s working fluently and well so there’s no change in the relationship.”

Haas had a pretty spectacular reputation as no nonsense racers until last year. Too many embarrassing team and driver errors. Constant whining about other teams. Trying to take Force India's hard earned points through court. Steiner defending the indefensible things Grosjean and Magnussen would take turns doing on track. Finally, the blatant copies of Ferrari parts. But even with all of that, I'm glad they're around. The midfield battle this year was the best I remember ever watching